Catalysing reforms - ESF support for better governance

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1 Catalysing reforms - ESF support for better governance October 2011, Warsaw Venue: Warsaw, Ministry of Regional Development Conference objectives: Support for good governance initiatives must be seen as complementary to successful implementation of the traditional areas of intervention covered under ESF, such as: employment, social integration or human and social capital. Consequently, the goals of Europe 2020 Strategy concerning the higher employment rates, increase in the number of better quality workplaces and facilitating social inclusion can also be met while developing the good governance idea in ESF programmes and projects. Support for better governance enhances public management process and secures effective implementation of socio-economic reforms. The conference aims at summarising the effects of good governance initiatives supported by the ESF and at continuing an in-depth debate on the future of such initiatives within the cohesion policy. Day One - Better governance context in the current and future policy Lunch CONFERENCE INAUGURATION: Marceli NIEZGODA, Undersecretary of State in the Polish Ministry of Regional Development Lenia SAMUEL Deputy Director General, Directorate General Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission PLENARY SESSION: THE ASSESSMENT OF GOOD GOVERNANCE ACTIVITIES Administrative capacity building was originally included into the ESF support areas in the programming period. The need to enhance the institutional potential of European countries, especially so called Convergence Countries, and their regions, comes from the conclusion that only professional public administration is able to pursue policies and introduce reforms contributing to the renewed Lisbon Process goals - higher employment rates and inclusive, economic growth. Yet, different countries and regions have developed specific approaches towards implementation of good governance under the ESF, giving a strong preference to its selected aspects, such as e-government or skill trainings for officials. The plenary session is intended to give a general overview on what was achieved and what has proven successful within the good governance initiatives in and what is still considered to become problematic or even unachievable. Keynote speaker Prof. Dr. Marga PRÖHL, Director-General of the European Institute of Public Administration (EIPA) Why should we improve good governance and professional public management?

2 Main trends in public administration reforms in Is it possible to observe certain regularity in the new member states? In which cases or policies is it essential to support partnership and bottom up approach? Successes and challenges concerning participation in public policy making in Does the ESF help public managers to pursue administrative reforms? How did EIPA support public managers in ? Prof. Dr hab. Artur NOWAK FAR, Warsaw School of Economics, Poland How could we assess the progress of administrative capacity building in Europe? Is there convergence between policies implemented at different levels (European, national, regional, local)? How could support for good governance initiatives contribute to the Europe 2020? Are ESF schemes an effective method to introduce new public management into administration? Coffee break Caroline VARLEY, Public Governance and Territorial Development Directorate, Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) OECD and EU good governance model: what key elements might be universally followed? What are successful factors to make administrative capacity building efficient? What are the lessons from public policy and governance reviews made by OECD for the years ? Has administrative capacity building improved the effectiveness of public administration? Main problems and challenges concerning the implementation of good governance under the ESF framework PLENARY SESSION WHAT REFORMS WILL PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REQUIRE IN THE FUTURE? When some detailed guidelines of the Europe 2020 Strategy are implemented, governments, particularly the ESF funds administrators, must assume a strategic approach towards socio-economic growth. Taking the common vision of EU development into account, it becomes obvious that the future public authorities should be prepared to support a knowledge based, environmentally friendly economy and develop innovative ways to facilitate social inclusion. The position of the Polish government on the future of cohesion policy after 2013 also underlines the need to adapt the capacities of the citizens and of the State to the global future challenges. This can and will be achieved by adopting a strategic approach towards the development of the State at the stage of programming, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. The participants of the second plenary session will be given an opportunity to present their reflections on the challenges that public administration will need to face in the future and the place of good governance concept in the next programming period 2

3 Keynote speaker Nathaniel COPSEY, Aston Centre for Europe, the United Kingdom The challenges towards public administration in the XXI century Taking into account the specific situation of the Convergence countries, what are the main challenges for the European public administration in the future? Does the effective governance really require strategic, knowledge-based approach and innovation while introducing socio-economic reforms? What criteria should be met to make new or renewed good governance initiatives efficient and possible to be adopted by public administration after 2014? Possibilities of counteracting bureaucracy by the bureaucratic governments typical of the Convergence countries How to stop a vicious circle of overregulation? Thomas BENDER, Unit ESF Legislation and Policy, Financial Engineering, Directorate General Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission What will be the future of good governance under the ESF in the years of EC conclusions from the mid of the perspective; how should the ESF promoters act in order to make the most of good governance initiatives? What will be the implications from strengthening capacity of national and regional authorities for the implementation of Europe 2020? Should the ESF reveal a specific approach towards good governance comparing to other intervention areas in the next programming period? What sort of initiatives could be a priority for the EC? How should structural funds, particularly the ESF, support administrative capacity in the future? Marcin GANCARZ, Strategic Analyses Department, Chancellery of the Prime Minister in Poland Strategic perspective of public administration development until 2030 What are main global challenges that may imply the need of enhancing state and citizens` capabilities in Poland? Presentation of the government strategic approach towards the public administration development in Poland: assumptions, measures, results Austerity measures versus effective administration. What are the challenges at the interface between public administration and politics? How could good governance initiatives under the ESF framework contribute at most to the development of Polish and European public administration in the future? Dinner for the participants of the conference in the Kubicki Arcades 3

4 2nd day Selected aspects of good governance including the ESF perspective PART ONE - TWO PARALLEL PANEL DISCUSSIONS STRATEGIC PLANNING In order to successfully introduce reforms responding to the latest socio-economic challenges, public authorities need to apply strategic-oriented management. This sort of management mainly comprises a result-based approach including elaboration of coherent strategic documents, performance-based budgeting and evidence-based policy. While enhancing the public sector`s capacity for both programming and implementation actions one should expect reduction of administrative costs and increase in citizens` satisfaction. The panel discussion will focus on the effectiveness of different measures used for supporting strategic oriented management, particularly the application of different strategic planning tools. During the discussion EU and beyond good practices at the central, regional and local level will be presented. Their success and risk factors will be analysed so that the panelists could consider the possibility of their translation multiplication. Recommendations on the shape of the future ESF support for strategic public management will be elaborated. Benedict WAUTERS, Community of Practice on Results Based Management (COP RBM), Flanders (moderator/ keynote speaker) Strategic-oriented and result-based management in EU programmes Moving from a fragmented collection of Managing Authorities, Intermediate Bodies, beneficiaries, final beneficiaries, etc. to a Programme Management Organisation, delivery partners and constituents, all aligned to a common objective Moving from accountability to responsibility: what does it mean for indicators, evaluation and performance based-budgeting? How could the ESF support better contribute to the performance based budgeting in the EU countries? James BRUMBY, Public Sector Governance, World Bank tbc The impact of performance-based budgeting on the productivity of public spending. Possibilities of improving policy by using results oriented budgeting and expenditure evaluation a short overview of the chosen OECD countries; To what extent can public budgets be citizen centred at the central and local level? Tomasz PACTWA, City of Warsaw, European Funds Department tbc Evidence-based policy in the city of Warsaw: good solutions to be followed and identified obstacles; To what extent performance-based budgeting and long-term planning are effective methods to manage finance at the local level? How could the ESF improve the process of strategic management at the city level? 4

5 Sue DUNCAN, Social Policy Association, the United Kingdom United Kingdom government's experience of evidence-based policy making Which specific factors make research policy cycle work? Possibilities of different solutions and practices for a successful interaction between policy and research. Could launching pilot projects help public administration address the need of applying strategic - oriented approach? Claudia VASILCA/ Roxana CHITU, OP Administrative Capacity Development Directorate, Ministry of Administration and Interior (ACB Network), Romania Good practices in strategic planning systems within the central and local public administration of the EU countries: cases of Sweden and United Kingdom/Belgium The assessment of strategic planning tools in the Convergence Countries regarding the formulation, monitoring and evaluation of policy in the current programming perspective? How could the ESF better support strategic planning approach in the next programming period? - draft recommendations BUSINESS-FRIENDLY ADMINISTRATION Rendering public services for enterprises in the way allowing systematic and gradual reduction of business operation costs and improved and socially-oriented co-operation between public and private sector are particularly important in meeting the objectives of Europe 2020 for sustainable, smart and inclusive growth. Therefore, a panel discussion will touch two aspects of making the administration more business-friendly: better regulation process and counteracting administrative burdens for business registration and operation. The panelists will comment on the data of national and international reports on doing business, validate the e-services rendered by central, regional and local authorities and the measures used to involve entrepreneurs in the economic legislation process. The conclusions on the progress of fulfilling two main Commission recommendations will be made: establishing a one-stop-shop for setting up a business and reducing the number of information obligations in the EU Member States. The panelists will be asked to present their opinions on what kind of activities supporting business considerations within public sector should be covered by the ESF in the future. Jarosław BEŁDOWSKI, Polish Financial Supervision Authority, ACB Network, Poland (moderator/ keynote speaker) What does business friendly administration really mean: main elements of the public administration support for enterprises and their value: better regulation programme, RIA, one stop shop/ points of single contacts, electronic registries, public consultation, taxes? Examples of good practices in developing business friendly approach in the EU/ Convergence countries Comment on available tools to measure administrative burdens for business. Have the existing tools proved to be sufficient and effective? What initiatives in the field of business friendly administration should be covered under the ESF framework? 5

6 Coffee break Josef KONVITZ, Regulatory Policy Division, Directorate for Public Governance and Territorial Development, OECD How should we set priorities for administrative simplification? Conclusions from the examples of recent approaches to simplify public administration: administrative burden measurement and reduction by the use of SCM, re-designing administrative processes and procedures, new ICT tools and e-government solutions What strategies could be developed to measure administrative burdens for business? What are the strong and week points of methods applied while implementing exemplary strategies? How should we communicate with entrepreneurs while implementing better regulation. Are there successful methods to inform general public about the better regulation goals? Artur KOPIJKOWSKI-GOŻUCH, Secretariat of the Minister, Ministry of Economy, Poland What are the main achievements and difficulties in the implementation of Regulatory Reform Programme in Poland? Poland has adopted a rule SME first. What are the practical implications of this rule for the small and medium enterprises? How could the ESF better support cutting the red tape towards business in Poland? Niklas TIDEKLEV, Swedish Agency of Regional and Economic Growth, Secretariat of the SCM Network, Sweden What are the recent targets and their results concerning the measurement of administrative costs in Sweden? The strong and week points of applied methods. How should the dialogue between public and business sector look like? Swedish approach towards public consultation, transparency and participatory monitoring of law PART TWO - TWO PARALLEL PANEL DISCUSSIONS PARTNERSHIP PRINCIPLE FOR LOCAL GOVERNANCE/DEVELOPMENT Pursuing policies that are adjusted to the needs of citizens means finding ways of securing bottom-up approaches that are based upon effective communication between local authorities and stakeholders such as business, non-governmental organizations or charity organizations and other local leaders. The discussion will focus on lessons learnt from pilot and innovative projects based on partnership arrangements that: design, implement and monitor local development strategies; participate in the legislation process; and perform or evaluate services rendered by local administration. Methods and tools used for empowering local stakeholders will be overviewed and their efficiency assessed. During the discussion participants will also look at how far participation measures adopted by public administration are aligned with the expectations of citizens as revealed in surveys or project diagnoses. Panelists will be encouraged to share their suggestions on what other support 6

7 measures or methods (face-to-face/ on-line) can be developed under the ESF in order to make partnership more than just a virtual principle. Discussants: Leda STOTT, Community of Practice on Partnership (moderator/ keynote speaker) Main guidelines for developing cross sector, multi-level partnerships are there particular success factors? The idea of partnership was particularly fostered during the European Commission s EQUAL initiative. Have the EQUAL results been pursued and intensified during the current programming period or has their significance been rather diminished and neglected? How can ESF programmes serve as a specific platform to support partnerships? Ewa ROŚCISZEWSKA, Foundation for Social and Economic Initiatives, Poland Good practices recognized by FISE in participatory budgeting and public consultation, examples of Grigny town in France What special incentives could be applied to make local stakeholders active in policy-making process and encourage then to keep watch on the effectiveness of public policies and spending? Is bottom up approach understandable and accepted by the Polish society? Ramunas DILBA, Department for EU Structural Assistance Management, Ministry of Finance, ABC Network, Lithuania What methods of empowering regional and local stakeholders in Lithuania have proved to be effective? Examples of pilot or innovative projects. What are the main challenges for enhancing a bottom-up approach when planning, implementing, monitoring and evaluating local policies? How might the main obstacles be overcome? How can the partnership principle contribute to the social objectives of Europe 2020 such as higher employment rates and inclusive growth? Representative of the Ministry of Interior in Greece Using the Kallikratis plan example, what has been the Greek experience of introducing local government reform? What key recommendations would you make based on this experience? What are your thoughts regarding the application of conditionalities to ESF and other EU financial support while introducing public administration reforms at local level? In what way could initiatives and methods that support local governance be better implemented under the framework of structural funds, particularly the ESF? E-GOVERNMENT AND INFORMATION SOCIETY In accordance with the goals of the Europe 2020 Strategy, the ESF supports innovation in delivery of public e-services and strengthens human capital at all territorial levels. Thus, providing citizens with e-governance solutions is perceived not only as enhancing the ICT infrastructure, but also as upgrading qualifications of public officials and computer literacy of public services users. E-government tools, can also be applied to transfer information or disseminate knowledge between public 7

8 authorities at different levels and for their contacts with stakeholders. This has proven to be less money- and time-consuming than traditional ways of communication. The panelists will discuss e-government trends and good practices applied in the old and new Member States including practices coming from beyond Europe. They will try to analyse necessary marginal conditions which have to be met in order to successfully implement good practices coming from the pioneer countries or those countries that are currently most advanced in developing e-services. The discussion will also focus on how to efficiently combine different sources of financing like ERDF and ESF while introducing e-tools in public administration. Ewa FREYBERG, Warsaw School of Economics, ACB Network, Poland (moderator/ keynote speaker) Why do we need e-administration? Costs and benefits analysis How to reform public administration in order to meet the challenges of e-economy/ e-business? What foreign e-government initiatives could serve as benchmarks while making assessment on the progress of e-government development in Poland and the other Convergence countries? What instruments should be available under the ESF in order to effectively implement the idea of information society and e-government? Alexander HEICHLINGER, EIPA, European Public Sector Award (EPSA) Trends in practices e-government solutions from the EPSA experience. Basic conditions to be fulfilled in successful implementation of good practices from the pioneer countries to the others. Bart NOELS/ Filip MEURIS, Good Intercommunale Leiedal, SMART CITIES project Experience gathered from the project Smart Cities (EIPA Public Sector Award 2009): How to develop effective and innovative public administrations for globally competitive Europe? Examples of successful e-strategies and strategic themes. What is a common framework for the future delivery of e- services in Europe? Could a transnational, transferable methodology, benchmarking and tools be developed in order to help regional authorities? Monika DIMITROVA, OP Administrative Capacity Directorate Ministry of Finance, ACB Network, Bulgaria Good practices in developing e-governance solutions within the central and local public administration of the EU member states: cases of Spain/ Austria/ Netherlands The assessment of e-government initiatives in the selected Convergence Countries? Should the countries which are less advanced in implementing public e-services follow the strategies developed by the pioneers? How could the ESF better support e-government in the next programming period? - draft recommendations Igor OSTROWSKI, Strategic Advisors` Team under the office of Polish Prime Minister, Digital Centre think thank, Poland tbc What is the current stage of introducing e-government in Poland at different territorial levels? Advantages and shortcomings, positive examples to be followed. 8

9 What are the most effective methods of using the ITC tools in order to enhance capacity of State and its citizens? Lunch PLENARRY SESSION ADMINISTRATION CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT AFTER 2013 Administrative capacity building initiatives focus on regular updating of public officials` knowledge and skills. Public officials are provided with innovative tools for strategic planning, rendering public services, internal and external communication as well as the development of participation mechanisms in the decision making process. The panelists will focus on the questions: how to support administration capacity development to achieve assumed goals? Is it possible to develop administration capacity by structural funds projects? The panelists should consider the issue of improving administration capacity in the context of new view on the cohesion policy: structural conditionalities, result-based approach and simplification. In the discussion the ESF experiences should be taken into account and some recommendations for cohesion policy should be formulated. Martin FORST, Division Governance Reviews and Partnerships, OECD Key conclusions from the report on sustainable governance indicators 2011 for the European Union countries. What are the OECD recommendations for administrative capacity building initiatives amid the global financial turmoil and economic crisis? What conditions should be met to make structural fund projects an effective tool for enhancing administrative capacity? Aurelio CECILIO, Unit ESF (Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic), Directorate General of Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission Lessons learnt from ESF intervention in capacity building and good governance: what has worked and what has not worked well? - What are the conditions for the successful intervention of ESF in this field? - What can be improved immediately (e.g. through mid-term review) and what should be done in the long term? - How can we develop these conditions in future programmes? Commission proposal of ex-ante and ex-post performance conditionalities and its applicability to the structural funds and particularly to good governance initiatives. Additional potential of macro-fiscal conditionalities Marcin ZAWICKI, Katedra Gospodarki i Administracji Publicznej, Małopolska Szkoły Administracji Publicznej Akademii Ekonomicznej w Krakowie - tbc CLOSING SESSION Paweł CHORĄŻY, Director of the Department for ESF Management in the Polish Ministry of Regional Development 9

10 Thomas BENDER, Head of Unit ESF Legislation and Policy, Financial Engineering, Directorate General Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, European Commission 10